Writing About Writers

More secrets of a successful writer revealed! Two of these resources are so valuable, I keep them hidden in my browser's bookmarks toolbar.  That also means that I use them so often, I want them right at click, which is the same as at hand. Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac, a service of American Public Media, is more than a database of poetry and authors.  Each day Keillor writes about authorial anniversaries (birthdays, publication dates and other events) providing background and details you might not know.

The Library Booklists and Bibliographies contains an enormous amount of material on books and writers.  The part that I've used the most is similar to The Writer's Almanac, and that is the section on Literary Births. The beauty of both of these resources is the additional information delivered about some of the authors.  Pick your favorite writer and search both sites to find useful material.

Finally, if I'm writing about a particular writer, or even a specific subject, I know I can always find a cogent quotation at Famous Quotes and Quotations at BrainyQuote. For example, the Quote of the Moment is "Every artist was first an amateur."  Ralph Waldo Emerson said it, and I am fond of reminding some that we were all unpublished writers when we began.  

Please, don't introduce yourself as such.  If you're a writer, you're a writer, published or not.  If being published is a criterion for something or someone, you'll discover it soon enough, so don't start out one-downing yourself. Hmm. I feel an "Inspiration" message in the making.

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